If you’re looking for a special and unique way to send holiday greetings to family and friends this year, sharing personal photos is one of the best ways to send a truly personalized greeting. It’s quick and easy to print beautiful color pictures straight from the computer or to share favorite photos by putting together a mini photo album on a CD.

Your personal holiday message can be as simple and sweet as a new baby’s face, as funny as a collage of your craziest events, or as sophisticated as a family portrait. Here’s a tip from Rick Sammon, professional photographer (ricksammon.com) and author of The Complete Guide to Digital Imaging: “When you’re taking a group photo, be sure to keep talking to your subjects—try to be funny and distract them from the actual picture-taking process. Silence is deadly for an image.”

You say you want to share more than one picture? Consider putting together a CD of your favorite photos. Make your photo selections full of variety, and include pictures that capture the spirit of your personality. Choose pictures taken throughout the past 12 months, so your friends can enjoy the highlights of your entire year. “Be sure to photograph not only the perfectly posed moments with everyone smiling, but also the imperfect moments of impromptu fun,” suggests Charlotte Lowrie (wordsandphotos.org), managing editor of MSN Photos. “While you have everyone in one place, invent your own iteration of the modern family snapshot. Think about including props or objects that help reveal family members’ current interests. Invent poses that help show relationships and family interactions.”

To enhance the recipient’s CD experience, you can even add music, backgrounds to photos, and even include photo captions. And don’t forget to design your own CD label using graphics that capture your style. An Avery CD Label looks great when you print your greetings in color. Let your personal photos, whether on print or CD, share your holiday cheer.